Warhead from explosion to be inspected in Texas

By
With Analysis from Monitor Correspondents around the world,
Edited by Randy Shipp /
September 24, 1980

Little Rock, Ark.

The 9-megaton nuclear warhead blown off an underground Titan II missile has been shipped to a nuclear weapons assembly plant near Amarillo, Texas, to be dismantled and inspected for damage. Pentagon sources said the warhead, tossed 200 yards, had only a slight dent and that there was no low-level radiation leakage from the fiery explosion that killed one airman and injured 21 others.

Meanwhile, the missile site in Damascus, Ark., was sealed while Air Force officials searched for five hand-size explosives, part of the launch mechanism on the missile. Toxic fumes also continued to rise from the 150-foot-deep silo.